Lonely Hearts Killers

"You know what they say about cops and donuts" quips Salma Hayek's character Martha Beck to James Gandolfini in the movie Lonely Hearts, "they're only good when they have a hole in them." This, coupled with Gandolfini's retort "funny, they say the same thing about women", captures the essence of the Chandler-esquire dialog that peppers this true crime homage to film noir.

The movie tells the story of Raymond Fernandez (Jared Leto) and Martha Beck who carved out their own chapter in the annals of crime history during the 1940s as the Lonely Hearts Killers. Together, Fernandez and Beck ran a con game using personal ads to seek out wealthy widows and single women with money. Fernandez would engage in correspondence with the women, eventually meeting them and gaining their trust as well as access to their money. Beck, would accompany him posing has his sister, helping Fernandez gain the trust of their victims, whom the two murdered after they'd drained their bank accounts. At the time of their capture, the body count they'd racked up was estimated at between 12 and 20.

Directed by Todd Robinson, the grandson of detective Elmer Robinson (played by John Travolta), the story alternates between that of Fernandez and Beck, and pursuing detectives Robinson and Hildebrandt (Gandolfini), with Gandolfini handling the connecting voice-over narration in traditional film noire patter.

Although some details are condensed for narrative purposes, the story largely sticks to the facts of the couple's actual murder spree, the only glaring discrepancy being the casting of Hayek as Beck, who in reality was a rotund, unattractive, battleaxe of a woman who maintained Fernandez's loyalty by granting his every sexual wish. The producers can be forgiven for opting to cast Hayek instead of a more credible Rosie O'Donnell type, however, as Hayek brings more than mere eye-candy to her role. She plays a sadistic, manipulative, cold-blooded murderer to the hilt, and practically serves as the driving engine for the film's story.

With a crackerjack cast of Travolta, Gandolfini, Hayek, Leto and Laura Dern (as Robinson's love interest) all bringing their A-game, coupled with a smartly written screenplay, snappy dialog, good pacing, excellent cinematography and direction, the only oddity about this film is that it was relegated to limited theatrical release, largely playing a few festivals before being relegated to DVD. Unlike the case it is based on, this is one crime that probably will remain unsolved.

Todd Robinson's 'Lonely Hearts' is a dramatization of the harrowing atrocities committed by the infamous Lonely Hearts lovers. The sepia tone, setting and props do give the look of the 40s but the language feels more contemporary.The film tells too parallel stories: that of the two brutal murderers and that of Elmer Robinson who is trying to cope with the loss of his wife.

The latter is boring mostly due to Travolta's poor performance (he looks uninterested almost during the entire running time) and the slow pace. The scenes at the police station fail to engage. Gandolfini is stuck with a cliché while Scott Caan's character is very irritating. Laura Dern is criminally wasted The story of the two murderers is way too fictionalized (or is Hollywoodized a better word?) and way underdeveloped but it grabs the viewer's attention. Jared Leto is exceptional as Ray Fernandez. Salma Hayek is arguably miscast, physically, as she is the total opposite of the real Martha Beck, but if you're willing to let that go then her acting is terrific. Her version of Beck is alluring, manipulative, obsessive and cold blooded and she conveys all those characteristics quite naturally.

Pretty much all the characters are poorly developed. There is no background information on the killers (true accounts depict that Ray's drastic personality change may have been a result of brain injury).

Overall, 'Lonely Hearts' feels very much like an ordinary thriller. Even with a stellar cast it fails to stand out.

In the late 40s, Raymond Fernandez (Jared Leto) is a hustler who cons rich women. He meets damaged Martha Beck (Salma Hayek). They become the notorious "Lonely Hearts Killers" who rob lonely widows using personal ads and then kill them. Robinson (John Travolta) and Hildebrandt (James Gandolfini) are homicide detectives. The killers eventually confess to twelve murders in total.

The cast is first rate. There is enough production value. However, writer/director Todd Robinson fails to generate any intensity for me. I think the most compelling characters are Fernandez and Beck. I would have like them to lead. Travolta and Gandolfini are great actors but I'm not fascinated by their characters. Following both sets of characters simply divides the attention of the audience.

This is an excellent film. Filmed in a classic "Film Noir" style, it is both dark and engaging. The script is well written and expertly crafted. The pace is fluid and the characters are well developed.

The score is appropriate and effective. It helps create tension and mood without becoming oppressive as many scores do.

The cinematography is absolutely terrific and creates a dark and intimate view.

All these elements combine to create an excellent environment for what is a truly inspiring cast. It would be difficult to overstate the quality performances of the entire cast. John Travolta was completely convincing as he always is but I think he may have surprised even his most supportive fans. He nailed the part hands down. In one scene he suspects a dead body is possibly hidden in a box and the mood he creates as he approaches and investigates the box is riveting.

But the true star of this movie was without doubt Salma Hayek. She was mesmerizing as Martha Beck, a true masterpiece. She played evil so well it was spooky. Most people who watch this movie are going to really enjoy how carefully she seduces the viewer into her despotic plans. This is certainly one of her finest portrayals and shows she has considerable acting depth. A nasty "femme fatale" may not be a huge stretch for her but she really did a terrific job.

"Lonely Hearts" is not a family movie. There is plenty of blood, boobs and bad language. The movie deals with very heavy themes like suicide and child murder. And to make matters worse for young ones the story is true. Martha Beck and Raymond Fernandez were real monsters and the movie shows more than enough to make that clear to anyone including kids.

I am a big fan of true crime and this film is really great. For me at least, it was one of the best I've seen in a long time. If you are an adult I recommend this film. Dramatized True Crime at it finest!

two detectives, 'buster'Elmer C. Robinson (travolta) and Charles Hildebrandt (gandolfini) hunt two killers Martha Beck and Raymond Fernandez played by salma hayek and jared leto.

basically the story is of two policemen chasing after two killers who, by posing as a single man and sister, enlist in finding their victims through the lonely hearts columns within newspapers and magazines.

on the acting side we'll start with the policemen first, travolta as essentially the lead cop in this movie is a somewhat torn man in his duty as a cop and in the loss of his wife, travolta soon finds a new lease,to speak of, by trying to capture the two killers, he is helped in this matter by gandolfini as his straight thinking,talking friend, but though the acting between the two is of an OK standing (gandolfini coming off stronger) the pairing doesn't come off as one would hope and it is slightly stale, more so within their dialog together.

the hunted pair,hayek and leto, have a better chemistry, despite what many have seen of hayek in this film, being wooden and poorly acted out, i'd give her a little more credit than the naysayers, mainly because the person she is portraying is of that type of person, soulless and wholeheartedly callous. her dominance shows through in her interpretation of a jealous and highly possessive person. but the real star who shines in this movie is leto, from his smile right down to the unsteadiness of his actions, movements,gestures are perfect and really shows us what his is capable of, could well be we are witnessing him in his prime, his ending is very well shot (credit to the director there, Todd Robinson).

a long and somewhat violent film, yet it leaves enough subject for conversation and reply value. in terms of what director robinson has achieve,well thats not much, mainly a wasted cast on a somewhat unfair choice in director (The director's grandfather was Elmer C. Robinson, the cop who investigated the Lonely Hearts murders). but still a film to watch.